Infrastructure boosts aquaculture growth at Xinjiang's Aheqi Farm

Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region's transportation and electricity infrastructure has accelerated the development of cold chain logistics, which expanded the scope of farming.

As over 500 mu of ponds at Aheqi farm entered the harvest season for Pacific white shrimp just before the Mid-Autumn Festival, local farmers are continually improving their techniques and expanding their aquaculture operations.

Xinjiang's complex terrain, shaped by tectonic activity 300 million years ago, has left about one-third of its farmland affected by varying degrees of salinization. Aheqi farm, leveraging the saline-alkali land resources and sufficient power supply, has transformed "alkali flats" into "sea flats", actively expanding land-based seafood farming over the years.

"Xinjiang has provided dedicated power services such as the construction of more water pumps and power lines for local farmers, allowing the smooth production of shrimps and other aquacultural produce," said a local farmer.

With an investment of 1.53 million yuan ($214,410) , three new distribution transformers and 3,540 meters of newly added power lines were constructed by local power operators to raise production efficiency, said State Grid Bortala Power Supply Co.

Looking to the future, Aheqi farm will continue optimizing its production to support the sustainable development of the region, empower the local economy and turn the specialty agriculture industry into a new engine for rural growth, said local government.

lijiaying@chinadaily.com.cn